In an effort to improve communication between students and nurse practitioners, the Cox Health and Counseling Center has recently debuted a new feature with the aim of offering students the option to message its nurse practitioners directly.
In an email to the Collegian, Senior Director of Wellness Alice Teall described the newest update to the Student Health Portal, titled “Ask A Nurse Practitioner,” as an “innovation for [the Health Center],” noting that in many primary care settings, patients can consult physicians, nurse practitioners and other clinicians with questions about their care. According to Teall, there is a secure message line added to the portal through which students can request remote services, including follow-up inquiries about their recent visits, advice regarding medications and questions about symptoms. She added that the introduction of the message box is a result of feedback indicating students previously had felt limited in their options to contact the Health Center.
This option is joining the ranks of resources outside of directly visiting the center, including the mental health-focused Telus Health Student Support app launched in the summer of 2023.
When asked about response times to inquiries, Associate Director of Health Services Amy Ferenbaugh said that nurses will respond within 24 hours during the week and by the end of the following Monday if the message was sent over the weekend. She also added that there will be an “away message” for when the College is not in session. While the communication is not anonymous, Ferenbaugh assured that all messages are confidential and that they can only be seen by nurses at the Health Center.
Lottie Mathew ’27 expressed optimism about the nascent feature while emphasizing the need for extended hours of operation: “This is a feature that I asked [the Health Center] for,” Mathew said in an interview with the Collegian. “They never have appointments available.”
While the messaging feature has been received positively by students, Ferenbaugh stressed that the Health Center would consider modifications based on students’ experiences.“We are open to feedback from students about how the secure message box works for them,” Ferenbaugh wrote in an email to the Collegian. “As with any new process involving technology, we are ready to problem-solve as needed.”
The virtual chat option is available 24/7 for students to access via the Student Health Portal under the Messages tab.